


Seasick Keith

by HyperactivePuppy



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Big Brother Shiro (Voltron), Caretaker Hunk, Galaxy Garrison, Garrison days, Gen, Keith & Shiro (Voltron) are Adoptive Siblings, Keith (Voltron) Whump, Motion Sickness, Seasick Keith, Seasickness, Sick Keith (Voltron), Sickfic, Vomiting, Young Keith (Voltron), caretaker pidge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-30
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2020-03-30 02:49:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19033225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyperactivePuppy/pseuds/HyperactivePuppy
Summary: Keith gets seasick during an ocean training exercise in the early Garrison days.





	Seasick Keith

**Author's Note:**

> The seasick Keith fic I promised to post months ago and never did XD. Its been sitting half written for months since con season hit and I was crazy busy. But here it is! Hope you enjoy!

“Okay okay, but remember that time we were learning boat stuff at the Garrison and Keith got seasick?” Lance jumped up in his chair gleefully, flinging his arms in the air.

The paladins were all gathered in the main lounge, relaxing after a long training session. It had been a while since they had gotten a chance just to kick back and relax and they were currently enjoying an in depth discussion about their days in the Garrison.

“Oh yeah, but we didn’t really know him well at the time,” Hunk added, scratching his chin in thought.

“Yeah and then that little girl who always hung around Matt and Shiro helped him when he got sick and he was _so_ embarrassed.”

Keith shot him a sharp glare.

“Ah Lance?...” Hunk glanced at Pidge, eyebrows raised.

She shrugged, although she was barely containing a smirk.

“What?” Lance asked, confused.

Pidge levelled her hands on her hips and stepped forward. “That ‘little girl’”—she emphasised the phrase with finger quotes—“was me.”

Lance gasped, mouth agape. “What? That was you?!”

“Close your mouth Lance,” Hunk chuckled from the other side of the couch.

“No way…” Lance was shaking his head, staring at Pidge in shock. “But she—I mean you, were so lit—” He cut off at a sharp glare from Pidge. “Caring! You were so caring.”

“What, you think a kid can’t handle helping someone out?” Pidge deadpanned.

“Well no…just…wow. I had no idea that was you. Keith? Did you know it was Pidge?”

Keith gave him a withering look. “Yeah. She’s Matt’s little sister.”

“WHAT?!”

“Oh my god, Lance. Stop talking before you dig yourself so deep even your lion can’t find you,” Hunk laughed, patting his best friend on the back.

There was a soft cough from the other side of the room and they all looked up to see Allura, one eyebrow poised in question. “May I ask what happened?”

“No,” Keith said before anyone else had a chance to answer.

“Aw, come on Keith! Live a little! Its been years, you can't still be embarrassed.”

Keith glared at Lance, crossing his arms protectively across his chest. “I said _no_.”

Allura was looking confused, as she often did when the paladins discussed things that weren’t relevant to Alteans. “I don’t understand…why would you be embarrassed Keith?”

Red was slowly creeping up Keith’s cheeks. He turned away, moving to get up, but before he could stand, a flying ball of Lance slammed into him, pinning him to the couch.

“You aren’t going anywhere!” Lance sang happily. “Okay Pidge, I’ll hold him down and you tell the story!”

Pidge crawled up onto the arm of the couch, eyes sparkling with laughter. “Okay, just don’t interrupt me.”

“What?? I never interrupt!”

Pidge and Hunk both fixed him with identical incredulous looks.

“I don’t!” Lance protested.

Pidge rolled her eyes. “Right, so it all started back when Keith, Lance, and Hunk first got into the Garrison. I wasn’t a student yet, but I was around a lot because my brother went there…”

* * *

 

Keith sucked in a deep breath of the fresh ocean air, closing his eyes as he let the wind ruffle through his hair. It was early morning, not much past five, and the sea shone bright orange in the sunrise. He yawned, shivering a little when a stiff breeze rushed across the sandy bay. Shiro said it was the perfect sailing wind.

He was eager to learn about sailing. It sounded exciting, adventurous, and above all, he wouldn’t be forced to interact with the other students because Shiro was teaching them.  This was going to be a wonderful day.

Shiro waved to him from the dock as he climbed up the salt encrusted steps with the other students. His eyes were bright, reflecting the smile the broke out across his whole face. Matt stood next to him, hand on hip and the other wrapped around the shoulders of a younger girl who must have been his sister.

Her eyes flicked up and he quickly looked away. He didn’t want to talk to anyone today. Except Shiro.

A large boat was tethered at the end of the dock, bobbing up and down in the waves as it strained at its ropes. They all climbed up onto the vessel, chatting eagerly about the lesson to come. Shiro gathered them all at the centre of the boat and went over the rules of sailing for what felt like the millionth time.

Once all of the rules had been addressed, and Shiro had explained how the day would go, Keith wandered away from the others and found a spot right by the bow. He curled himself against the ropes and blinked out at the horizon, excitement rising in his heart. This was perfect. Quiet, still, away from all the—

“Dude come on! This is the perfect spot!”

Keith’s head snapped up, annoyance rising as he watched one of the other students drag his friend over to his lovely quiet space. Great. So much for a peaceful trip.

“Lance slow down! Come on man you know those seasick pills make me sleepy,” the boy who was being pulled forcefully along said.

The other boy—Lance—sighed dramatically. “I know! But we have to do the Titanic pose, come on! It’s the perfect lighting and everything!”

Lance. The most cocky, annoying, boisterous person Keith knew. How did that kid ever get anything done with all the jokes he made? Seriously? And for some reason, he always wanted to race with Keith, or compete over something. Keith just wanted to be left alone. Away from Lance. He didn’t want friends. Why did this kid keep trying to talk to him?!

He huffed out a sigh, watching as Lance dragged the taller boy—Hunk, Keith thought his name was—over to the railing, arms outstretched to the side and the dreamiest lovesick expression plastered on his face. Hunk awkwardly slipped behind him and wrapped his arms around Lance’s waist. They held the pose for a total of thirty seconds before they both broke off laughing hysterically.

Keith ignored them, turning away and pressing against the mast so they wouldn’t see him and try to start up a conversation. They had to get far enough out to sea before they could start the training exercise so he still had time and did not want to spend it talking with Lance.

After a few minutes of animated conversation, his two classmates wandered back to the middle of the ship. Keith was glad. Warm sunlight was seeping into his skin and he felt his eyes drifting closed. At first, he fought to stay awake, but drowsiness finally got the best of him and he drifted off to the sound of waves hitting the sides of the boat.

* * *

 

When he woke, the rush of waves was significantly louder and the boat pitched from side to side. It was then, blinking in the now bright sunlight, Keith realised the boat had stopped. He frowned, scrambling to his feet. How long had he slept?

He caught the edge of the railing, feeling the deck lurch beneath him. The feeling was strange and not entirely pleasant. It felt like his whole equilibrium had been thrown off and he was left wobbling like a newborn colt.

Keith stood there for a moment, clutching the rail and letting his body acclimatise to the new sensation. Finally, he let go of the railing. It didn’t exactly feel better, but at least he could walk without stumbling to the side.

When he reached the centre of the ship, all of the other cadets were already gathered there, being addressed by Shiro.

“Alright, now that we have reached the open water, I want you to break off into pairs,” Shiro was saying. “You will be required to complete a short obstacle course with your partner, with one of you steering and the other navigating. You will be using the smaller boat here to complete the task.” He indicated a small boat tethered to the stern. “Understood?”

There were murmurs of ascent all around as the students all nodded their heads and began to mill around, locating their friends to partner up with.

Keith felt a lump rise in his throat. Shiro hadn’t said they would be working with partners… He hated partner work. Partly because no one ever wanted to work with him and partly because he really didn’t want to interact with the other cadets.

He took a step back, trying to blend into the background. Maybe if he just kept quiet Shiro wouldn’t notice and he could do the exercise on his own?

That hope was dashed within the seconds as Shiro’s eyes roved the crowd of students and landed on him. “Keith!” he called, waving to get his attention.

Keith blinked. All of the other cadets had partnered up, leaving no extra person. Perfect, looks like he’d be running the drill alone anyw—”

“Keith! You’ll be working with Katie, okay?”

 _What? Who was he talking abo—oh._ Keith watched as the auburn-haired girl he had seen earlier with Matt stepped forward. She was small and looked about three years younger than him. But why was she there… and why was she participating? She wasn’t old enough to be in the Garrison surely.

“Um…hi,” he said, awkwardly sticking out a gloved hand.

“Hi,” she replied simply. “I’m Katie, Matt’s sister.”

She didn’t take his hand and Keith let it awkwardly fall to the side, feeling even more uncomfortable. _Oh…so that’s why she was here._

He glanced up at Shiro, giving him a wide-eyed, desperate look. _Why are you doing this to me?_

Shiro just smiled back, running a hand through his hair. Great. He was well and truly on his own with…Matt’s little sister. He glanced down at her again, scanned her long hair and bright, determined eyes. She looked like someone he wouldn’t want to cross, despite her small stature.

“So, you done any sailing before?” she asked suddenly.

Keith gulped. “Ah…not really. This is my first time.”

She frowned, a calculating expression stirring her features. “Okay, I’ll steer then, you navigate. Matt and I come out here all the time so I know all about handling boats.”

Keith didn’t really know what to say so he simply nodded. They stood in silence for a while, watching as Shiro and Adam helped the first pair into the boat and gave them instructions about the obstacle course.

After a while, Katie took out a small tablet and began typing away, muttering quietly to herself. Keith didn’t mind. At least that way he didn’t have to talk to her. Small talk was _not_ his forte.

He watched the cadets cycle through, entering the small boat one after another, flushed and breathless with excitement. After four pairs, Lance and Hunk stepped up, and then it was their turn.

Keith climbed into the bow, following Katie’s directions. She took the seat at the stern and grabbed the tiller.

“Alright, watch out for any obstacles and let me know well in advance. Oh, and use the proper terminology. Bow is the front, stern is the back, port is the left side, starboard the right, forward means towards the bow and aft means towards the stern, make sense?”

“Ah…” Keith said, but Katie was already pushing them away from the larger ship.

At first things seemed to be going okay. He directed Katie through the obstacles, almost yelling to be heard over the brisk wind and slopping of the water. They were half way through the course when he started to feel strange. At first, it was nothing more than a slight uneasiness. Dizziness maybe. He shook it off as lack of sleep and kept pushing through, but by the time they arrived back at the main boat, the feeling had strengthened. Maybe he was dehydrated… That must be it.

He climbed out of the boat, stumbling a little as he stepped over the railing. Now that he was standing, he felt even worse. An unpleasant dizziness plagued his body and nausea was starting to creep into his stomach. He swallowed, turning away from the other cadets and moving towards the far side of the boat. The deck was rocking back and forth beneath his feet and he was relieved to finally sink down against the raised platform in the middle of the boat. He closed his eyes, hanging his head between his knees to try and stem the lightheaded dizziness that had taken up refuge in his body. _What was wrong with him? Did dehydration hit this fast? When did he last have a drink?_

Questions swirled through his mind, spinning along with the vertigo and amping up the nausea that was steadily growing in the pit of his stomach. He wanted to go find a drink, but he couldn’t move. Hot sweat broke out across his neck and back, soaking his hair and making him feel even more gross. Minutes passed, and the feeling didn’t go away. Instead it grew. By now Keith had given up hope of the nausea leaving. Maybe he should try and find a bathroom. But Shiro had said there wasn’t one on this boat… Panic rose, sharp and biting. There was no way out of this situation.

He took a few deep, slow breaths, squeezing his eyes even tighter shut. The ship rocked beneath him, mirrored perfectly by the contents of his stomach.

“Hey?” A low voiced called, tentative and soft. There were footsteps, then, “Are you okay?”

It took Keith a minute to realise the person was talking to him and by that point, they had already approached and were kneeling down in front of his curled body. A hand rested on his shoulder and he flinched, sucking in a quick breath. The hand immediately disappeared.

“Hey ah…your name’s Keith, right?” The voice was louder this time, more insistent.

Keith gave a tiny nod, afraid that anything else would send his stomach in turmoil.

“My name’s Hunk. Big guy, with an orange bandana.” He chuckled, obviously trying to lighten the mood.

Keith didn’t say anything, instead burying his face further into his knees.

“I just saw you sitting there and wanted to check to make sure you were okay,” Hunk continued, seemingly undeterred by the lack of response. “Are you feeling sick?”

Keith swallowed hard. He didn’t want to admit to not feeling well. He was supposed to be strong, to hide every little sign of weakness. But he was starting to think he didn’t have a choice here. He nodded, letting out the tiniest murmur of assent, “dizzy.”

Hunk sighed sympathetically. “Yeah, I thought maybe you did. It’s really rough out here today so I don’t blame you. I would be hurling my guts over the side if I hadn’t taken motion sickness meds.”

Keith grimaced, his face paling. He sucked in a deep breath and blew it out, praying the fresh air would somehow calm the monster in his stomach.

Hunk was speaking again and it took him a moment to tune back in. “So, here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to get you some water and I’m going to sit here with you for a bit.” He turned around, leaning over his shoulder. “Lance! Can you go get some water? And the motion sickness tablets?”

Lance peeked his head around the mast, eyes widening as he saw Keith. “Ah yeah. Sure. Be right back.” He spun around and disappeared from sight.

He returned moments later, a bottle of water in one hand and a small packet in the other. “Here.” He handed both items over to Hunk.

Hunk took them, opening up the packet and handing two small pills to Keith. “Here, take these. Usually you’re supposed to take them half an hour before travelling, but it’s worth trying now.”

Keith accepted the pills and swallowed them quickly, closing his eyes as soon as the water went down. He didn’t want to put anything in his stomach, but he would do anything to stop the nausea at this point.

They sat in silence for a while, Keith battling with the monster in his stomach. After a bit, Hunk nudged him, speaking gently.

“Try watching the horizon. It always helps me when I’m feeling motion sick.”

Keith opened his eyes, horrified to realise there were a couple of other cadets watching them. No…this wasn’t supposed to happen. He couldn’t look weak!

He closed his eyes immediately as a rush of nausea accompanied the realisation he was being watched.

The monster in his stomach shifted, crawling up and tickling at the back of his throat. He swallowed, fighting not to gag. He couldn’t throw up. He just couldn’t.

Feeling dizzy, he slid down until his body was flat against the deck of the ship. Maybe lying down would help…

It didn’t.

Nausea rose and he gagged, stomach rebelling against his control.

“Um, Hunk?” Lance said, voice worried. “Um…I think he’s gonna throw up.”

There were hands on his back, rubbing up and down.

“Oh my god!” Another kid yelled, voice shrill.

“He’s sick!”

“Someone get Lieutenant Shirogane!”

Keith whimpered as his stomach gave a vicious heave. Nothing substantial came up, but his mouth was drowning in saliva. He spat it out, not caring that it was gross and sticky strings were now hanging off his chin. He just felt so sick.

“Okay, okay. Let’s get you to the side,” Hunk said, reaching around Keith and dragging him upright. He manoeuvred the gagging kid over to the railing and propped him up against the side.

Keith gripped the railing, leaning over and gagging into the water. He coughed and spat, then a rush of liquid shot up his throat and he heaved into the water.

“Get Shiro!!” Someone yelled behind him. He couldn’t make out what the other cadets were saying, but their voices were loud and alarmed. Great. Everyone knew.

He heaved again, lurching over the side.

Hunk’s hands were on his back, comforting, solid. But it wasn’t Shiro. He really really wanted his brother.

Then a voice broke through the haze of sound, loud and commanding. Shiro!

Then his brother was there, holding him, murmuring gently.

Another voice arrived, shoeing away the other cadets and gathering them up at the other side of the boat.

Keith had never been more grateful for Matt.

“Oh Keith…” Shiro sighed, brushing back the kid’s hair. “Didn’t know you got seasick, Buddy.”

Keith shrugged. He didn’t know either.

“I gave him some motion sickness meds, but I think he threw them up,” Hunk added tentatively. “I noticed him looking a little weird and he said he wasn’t feeling well. But that was just about ten minutes ago.”

Shiro nodded to Hunk. “Why didn’t you say anything before?” he asked Keith gently.

Keith shrugged again. He really didn’t want to have this conversation now. The nausea was rising again and he didn’t want to admit he was scared with Hunk there.

Shiro sighed. “Alright, I have to go help with the rest of the training sessions, but I’m going to get you settled first, okay? There isn’t much left and then we’ll head back to shore.”

Keith nodded wordlessly.

Shiro got him set up by the side with a blanket and a bucket Keith was determined not to use. He also gave him some water and another set of motion sickness tablets.

Keith closed his eyes, trying to will away the nausea. At least the other cadets were gone now…but the deck was heaving and rocking underneath him and it made his stomach churn violently.

After a while, someone else arrived, sitting down next to him with a soft hum. “Hi,” they said.

Keith opened his eyes to see Katie. “Hi,” he said back, quietly.

“Matt said you weren’t feeling well so I thought I’d come help. He always gets sick in the car when he reads so I’m good at helping people who are motion sick.”

“Oh,” Keith said. He didn’t really know how to respond to that.

Katie hummed softly—something from Moana, Keith was pretty sure.

“Did you throw up?” she asked after a moment, eyes moving to meet Keith’s.

Keith looked down, eyes fixed on the ground. “Yeah,” he whispered. There was no point lying. Especially since he felt like he was going to do it again any moment.

Katie nodded wisely. “Matt throws up a lot when he gets carsick. It's gross. He can’t aim at all. One time we were on a road trip and he puked all over the dashboard! Mum keeps puke bags in the car now just in case. She calls it the Matt factor---hey, are you okay?”

She turned to Keith, eyes wide with concern.

Keith nodded, but his face said otherwise. He’d gone very pale, every ounce of colour vanishing from his face to be replaced by a sickly greenish tint. The topic of conversation was not helping matters.

“Are you going to throw up?”

Stop talking! Keith buried his head in his knees, eyes squeezed shut. He tried to breath slow like Shiro taught him, but it wasn’t helping.

Katie seemed to notice his fear and a moment later her hand found its way to his shoulder. “It’s okay. I know it feels gross, but you’ll feel better after. And you don’t have to worry about others seeing. It’s just me and I won’t judge.”

Keith felt like crying. His eyes burned with unshed tears as his stomach heaved violently. He grabbed frantically for the bucket, getting it under his face just in time to throw up miserably.

Katie rubbed her hand up and down his back, humming in sympathy.

When he was finally done, Keith pulled back, setting the bucket to the side and curling up on the deck.

Katie got down next to him, shielding him from view so the other cadets wouldn’t see.

“It’s okay. You can sleep,” she told him quietly. “I’ll wake you when we get back.”

Keith nodded, too miserable to protest. To his relief, he managed to drift off and spent the rest of the trip in a light doze.

Katie stayed with him the whole time, gently rubbing his back. Hunk came back to check on him at one point too but left when he saw Keith was asleep and well cared for.

When they got back to shore, Katie waited until all the other cadets were off the boat before waking Keith. By that point Shiro was back, having sent Matt on ahead with the other students.

“Come on, Bud. Let’s go home and get you settled in a proper bed,” he said, leaning down and picking up his little brother.

Keith mumbled something, burrowing into Shiro’s chest.

“Thanks for looking out for him,” Shiro told Katie, smiling at the little girl. “You really are wise beyond your years.”

Katie grinned and walked off to find Matt, leaving Shiro and Keith alone to go home.

* * *

 

“And that is how Keith and I met,” Pidge finished.

“Or how Keith got seasick,” Lance added with a light elbow jab at his friend.

Keith glowered, turning away.

“Still can’t believe you didn’t know that was Pidge,” Hunk laughed.

Lance flung his arms up in the air. “She had long hair back then! How was I supposed to know?!”

“Ah…I think we’re just gonna leave that one,” Hunk chuckled, grinning playfully. “Point is, Pidge is a good caretaker and I’m not the only one who gets motion sick!”


End file.
